So, the roommate and I are both sick.
A little over a month ago we moved into our apartment with the excitement that comes with all things new. Now let me just take a moment to say that I am very happy to be out of the dorms, living in a humble one bedroom apartment, sharing with only one other person...but there were issues tied in with this that I was a little less than chipper about. Things that should have been taken care of before our arrival. Roommate mentioned these in her blog, but I am going to as well.
Item #1 - Our pantry had three broken/missing shelves. Roommate's BF measured and built some new ones for us and we split the cost for materials. We petitioned for Facilities to reimburse us as we felt it was something they should have provided for us as we do pay rent. However, we were told that they were only required to provide us with "a" shelf, which they did, and that was to suffice.
Item #2 - A cabinet door that, once opened, broke off the hinge and hung awkwardly on the other. It stuck out and snagged us every time we walked by. It took them three weeks to come and repair.
Item #3 - The previous tenants left a present for us in our garbage disposal. We put in a request for a repair, but it ended up being me who reached in and pulled out the unidentifiable plastic object. Roommate found a work order from Facilities taped to our door a week later saying that they had come in and fixed it... Good work guys. Thanks a billion.
Item #4 - Our bathtub would not drain. Luckily, an entire bottle of drain cleaner worked it's magic, for the most part anyway.
Item #5 - Our apartment walls and doors have been painted over so many times that our adhesive hooks wont stay for long. We've have problems with things falling off the walls, such as our curtains, my towel hook, and our full length mirror. One of the curtain hooks actually fell off without any weight put on it.
Item #6 - This is the biggie, people. Our carpet was cleaned over the summer. Nice, right? Not so much. After being shampooed, our apartment was closed up and not given time to air out.
Therefore, we moved in to a mildew infested apartment. Yay! Though I have to say, that was the quickest I've ever seen Facilities respond to a work order, and rightly so. They re-cleaned the carpet and left a dryer with us over the weekend.
SO, we should be good right? Right?
Wrong again.
We've both been sick for weeks now, going back and forth with the same symptoms and feeling not quite up to par everyday.
Now, I have just been hoping that something is going around and a little bit of Airborne and a fair amount of sleep will cure us.
Clearly, I don't want to, nor do I have time to, clear out my possessions and furniture so new carpet can be put in.
Unfortunately, this has been going on so long and all signs are pointing towards remaining mildew being the source of our unhealth.
Unsure
Right now, I dont feel like myself.
I can't figure out if that is a good thing or bad.
I am swamped. I am working too much and taking too many classes and committing myself to too many things. I like it this way. I like keeping busy, I like feeling like I've accomplished something at the end of every day. And yet, I have no time for myself and I'm finding myself more irritable than usual. I'm less sensitive to the things I am usually stressing over, and I'm more sensitive to things that really dont mean diddly squat. And yes, I did just use that expression from a billion years ago, compliments of my mother.
Here's the thing. I do feel like I'm being productive. I mean, every day I do something which last year I would have been happy to have done in a week (then again, last year I had mono), but at the same time, I'm not getting done the things I really want to get done. I'm spending all my time reading books I dont care about, writing assignments that mean nothing to me, and basically just trying to do whatever I can to graduate with high honors. Up front that ambition sounds admirable, respectable, doable... but if you take a step back, and look at the things I am not getting done (i.e. finishing a feature script just for fun, writing the next great American novel, taking some time to travel the world...) because I'm so busy with the "important" stuff, my time spent looks pretty meaningless.
My mom probably would never wish for me to live the life she led. This is why I'm getting my bachelor's degree and starting over all the way across the country. Yet her young adult life, or at least her ability to move around and just adventure freely, is looking pretty appealing to me right about now.
I can't figure out if that is a good thing or bad.
I am swamped. I am working too much and taking too many classes and committing myself to too many things. I like it this way. I like keeping busy, I like feeling like I've accomplished something at the end of every day. And yet, I have no time for myself and I'm finding myself more irritable than usual. I'm less sensitive to the things I am usually stressing over, and I'm more sensitive to things that really dont mean diddly squat. And yes, I did just use that expression from a billion years ago, compliments of my mother.
Here's the thing. I do feel like I'm being productive. I mean, every day I do something which last year I would have been happy to have done in a week (then again, last year I had mono), but at the same time, I'm not getting done the things I really want to get done. I'm spending all my time reading books I dont care about, writing assignments that mean nothing to me, and basically just trying to do whatever I can to graduate with high honors. Up front that ambition sounds admirable, respectable, doable... but if you take a step back, and look at the things I am not getting done (i.e. finishing a feature script just for fun, writing the next great American novel, taking some time to travel the world...) because I'm so busy with the "important" stuff, my time spent looks pretty meaningless.
My mom probably would never wish for me to live the life she led. This is why I'm getting my bachelor's degree and starting over all the way across the country. Yet her young adult life, or at least her ability to move around and just adventure freely, is looking pretty appealing to me right about now.
Just Slightly Giddy
OK, I am excited about two things right now and, naturally, both of them are movies.
Happy Source #1
There's nothing I like better than the prospect of a new Cameron Crowe film. He has this extraordinary talent for bringing realism to the screen.
Characters - relatable, plotlines - believable, romance - desirable, music - incredible.
In my mind, Crowe is the epitome of filmmaking genius. The "Untitled Cameron Crowe Project" is currently in pre-production and is set to star Ben Stiller and Reese Witherspoon. Though the casting choice may give me pause, I'm going to trust him and hope for the best. He hasn't let me down yet -- even with "Elizabethtown," which I still greatly enjoyed despite its flaws. So sue me.
Happy Source #2
"Revolutionary Road."
Not to be confused with "Reservation Road," starring Joaquin Phoenix and Mark Ruffalo (le sigh), which I haven't actually seen yet and kick myself for. Then again, with the exception of "Pineapple Express," I haven't seen any new movies in months.
Anyway, "Revolutionary Road" is based on a novel of the same name by Richard Yates and is set to come out the day after Christmas.
Why am I so excited about this one, you ask? (Now pay close attention kids.) It will be the first reunion of Kate and Leo since "Titanic," and I am intrigued, to say the least. They were cute as Rose and Jack, but they have both grown up a great deal and have evolved into two of the most talented actors I've seen lately.
Pair that with the fact that the book was listed as "one of the 100 best English-language novels" since 1923 and runs in league with greats like Catch 22 and I must conclude that this can only be a good thing.
Happy Source #1
There's nothing I like better than the prospect of a new Cameron Crowe film. He has this extraordinary talent for bringing realism to the screen.
Characters - relatable, plotlines - believable, romance - desirable, music - incredible.
In my mind, Crowe is the epitome of filmmaking genius. The "Untitled Cameron Crowe Project" is currently in pre-production and is set to star Ben Stiller and Reese Witherspoon. Though the casting choice may give me pause, I'm going to trust him and hope for the best. He hasn't let me down yet -- even with "Elizabethtown," which I still greatly enjoyed despite its flaws. So sue me.
Happy Source #2
"Revolutionary Road."
Not to be confused with "Reservation Road," starring Joaquin Phoenix and Mark Ruffalo (le sigh), which I haven't actually seen yet and kick myself for. Then again, with the exception of "Pineapple Express," I haven't seen any new movies in months.
Anyway, "Revolutionary Road" is based on a novel of the same name by Richard Yates and is set to come out the day after Christmas.
Why am I so excited about this one, you ask? (Now pay close attention kids.) It will be the first reunion of Kate and Leo since "Titanic," and I am intrigued, to say the least. They were cute as Rose and Jack, but they have both grown up a great deal and have evolved into two of the most talented actors I've seen lately.
Pair that with the fact that the book was listed as "one of the 100 best English-language novels" since 1923 and runs in league with greats like Catch 22 and I must conclude that this can only be a good thing.
Insomniac
I'm sensing a pattern... and this pattern is my complete and utter lack of sleep.
I do sleep, don't get me wrong. But I sleep very little, and often unexpectedly on the couch.
Why do I sleep on the couch? Do I think my roommate smells? No, no I don't.
Is my bed extremely uncomfortable? Not since I bought a foamy mattress pad. Could it be that for class every Friday morning I have to have read 5 short stories and written 1? Bingo.
Now, one might say that I should do this during the week, and I might agree, until I look at the rest of my homework schedule. Every other block of time during the week is taken up by an assignment for a different class. Therefore, this assignment typically gets done between the hours of 12am and 9am, with me randomly falling asleep for a few short hours (in a very awkward position I might add) on the couch, then my roommate asking me if I ever went to bed when she wakes up and finds me still in the living room. This has occurred every Thursday night/Friday morning since the beginning of the semester. I do not plan it. I do not wish it. If anyone can help me remedy this situation, please give me a suggestion. Though, preferably a suggestion that does not involve me doing homework on a Friday night.
It seems as if the only time I sleep soundly is on the weekends. I really don't like sleeping in, so when I woke up yesterday and couldn't get out of bed, I hated myself for having to stay in bed until noon. What a waste of the day!
On the bright side, I have acquired a taste for Chai. <- more like "acquired an addiction."
Music vs. Movies
So, I think it's very interesting - the differentiation between movie lovers and music lovers. Most people are both, myself included, but I'd have to say I'm slightly more fond of movies than music. If I had to choose between going to a concert or seeing a movie in the theatre, I would pick the movie. I honestly just don't have the attention span for a concert, nor do my feet have the endurance to stand such long periods of time. The band would have to be pretty incredible performers (or I would have to know someone in the band) for me to really get into it.
I tend to think that when it comes to music and movies, you can't really have one without the other. However, I have heard the argument that you can have music without movies but not the other way around. Personally -- and I doubt I'm the only one in this -- every time I listen to music I start visualizing sequences of a movie that I might like to write, and every time I write I start subconsciously deciding which songs should go where. So for me, they go hand in hand.
I tend to think that when it comes to music and movies, you can't really have one without the other. However, I have heard the argument that you can have music without movies but not the other way around. Personally -- and I doubt I'm the only one in this -- every time I listen to music I start visualizing sequences of a movie that I might like to write, and every time I write I start subconsciously deciding which songs should go where. So for me, they go hand in hand.
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